Kirsten Nielsen (she/her), RDN, LD, is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) and Licensed Dietitian in the state of Minnesota. She has worked in the field of eating disorders since 2000 and currently serves as the Dietetic Internship Director and Recovery Support Services Director for The Emily Program. In these roles, she develops the training content and coordinates educational rotations and supervised practice experiences for dietetics interns across The Emily Program . Additionally, Kirsten is a part of the Clinical Expert Education Team that offers trainings to staff and the public.
Kirsten received her bachelor’s degrees in Biology and also Food, Nutrition and Dietetics at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota and graduated from the St. Mary’s/Mayo Clinic Dietetic Internship in Rochester, Minnesota. She has extensive & varied experience in providing eating disorder care as a RD on a multidisciplinary team for people across the eating disorder diagnosis spectrum. And she is particularly proud to have been a part of expanding eating disorder services in Minnesota.
Taking the Emphasis off of Food: Navigating December Holidays and New Year’s Resolutions
This session is designed for individuals, loved ones, and professionals who want to center recovery and well-being during the holiday and New Year season—times often marked by heightened emotional complexity, cultural expectations, and food-centric traditions. The December holidays and resolution culture can intensify eating disorder struggles, especially when diet talk, social dining, and body-focused conversations dominate the landscape. Whether you're navigating your own recovery or supporting someone else, this session offers practical insights, compassionate strategies, and tools to help...Read more you stay grounded in what truly matters.
Through reflection, planning, and community support, we’ll discuss how to:
• Recognize the impact of cultural and familial traditions on eating disorder recovery
• Understand the emotional and relational dynamics that make this season challenging
• Shift focus from food and appearance to connection, values, and healing
• Prepare “cope-ahead” strategies for triggering situations
• Create space for hope, belonging, and self-compassion Less...
Learning Objectives
- List at least three emotional, cultural, or relational factors that contribute to increased eating disorder symptoms during the holiday and New Year season.
- Explain how food-centric traditions, diet culture, and resolution messaging can influence recovery behaviors and emotional well-being.
- Identify at least two ways belief systems, personal identifiers (e.g., cultural background, gender identity, neurodiversity), or experiences of exclusion may affect an individual’s holiday experience and recovery process.
- Articulate one personal value and one recovery goal that they want to prioritize during the holiday season.
- Demonstrate the use of at least two “cope-ahead” strategies for managing triggering situations such as social dining, body talk, or family dynamics.
- Practice one communication technique and one boundary-setting strategy that supports recovery and fosters respectful relationships.
- Describe at least two inclusive approaches to celebration that promote connection, belonging, and healing for individuals with diverse identities.
Target Audience
Professional counselors, mental health professionals, dietitians, social workers, healthcare providers, and individuals seeking to expand their knowledge in these areas.
Learning Levels
- Intermediate
Thursday, December 04, 2025
Live Interactive Webinar
11:00 AM CST - 12:00 PM CST
EARN 1 CE Credit Hours
Click Here to Register
Click Here to Register
About the speaker
Kirsten Nielsen RDN LD
Recovery Support Services Director/Dietetic Internship Director
Agenda
1. Welcome & Framing the Session (5 min)2. Understanding the Holiday Season’s Complexity (10 min)
3. Why the Holidays Can Be Difficult (10 min)
4. Re-centering: What Really Matters (10 min)
5. Practical Tools & Strategies (15 min)
6. Sources of Support & Closing Reflection (10 min)
CE Information - Earn 1 CE Credit Hour
CE Approvals
American Psychological Association
The Emily Program is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Emily Program maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
National Board for Certified Counselors
The Emily Program has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP no. 7166. Programs that do not qualify are clearly identified. The Emily Program is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
CE Process Info
Each professional is responsible for the individual requirements as stipulated by their licensing agency. Please contact your individual licensing board/regulatory agency to review continuing education requirements for licensure renewal. Please note: You must attend "live" (in real-time) to earn CE credits. No partial credits.
Before the event, you will receive an email from CE-Go with access to the virtual event. After the event, you will receive access to your evaluation and continuing education certificate via a personalized "attendee dashboard" link, hosted on the CE-Go website. This link and access to the virtual event will be sent to the email account you used to register for the event.
Upon accessing the CE-Go "attendee dashboard", you will be able to:
- Complete evaluation forms for the event
- Download your continuing education certificate in a PDF format
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the CE-Go platform, please contact CE-Go at 888-498-5578 or by email at support@ce-go.com Please Note: Emails for this event will come from "support@ce-go.com".
If you have any continuing education related questions, please contact outreach@emilyprogram.com.
Please make sure to check your spam/junk folder in case those emails get "stuck". We'd also suggest "whitelisting" support@ce-go.com. This tells your email client that you know this sender and trust them, which will keep emails from this contact at the top of your inbox and out of the junk folder.